text:
Nov 14, 2010: Terry Lakin Action Week
Countdown to the Court Martial: TERRY LAKIN ACTION WEEK
On December 14, Army officer LTC Terry Lakin will be appearing in a courtroom at Fort Meade, Maryland- for the court-martial he invited by disobeying military orders in pursuit of the truth about Obama's Constitutional eligibility under Article II, Section 1, requiring the President and Commander-in-Chief be a "natural born" citizen. LTC Lakin tried many times, without success, through his chains of command, to seek an answer to his nagging question- is Barack Obama legally, Constitutionally eligible, to serve as head of the U.S. Armed Forces?
With Congress back for the "lame duck" session we are urging Terry's advocates to make calls to Capitol Hill- and to newly elected Members of Congress- during the week of Nov 15-19 to urge them to speak up for LTC Lakin and to provide feedback on the response to those calls. Remember that the U.S. Congress works for you- and that Members have a certain obligation to respond to constituent inquiries- but please be polite and respectful in advancing your point of view.
The Capitol Switchboard is 202/225-3121 and the Senate is 202/224-3121. You may reach any House or Senate office through these telephone numbers. The internet addresses are as follows: www.house.gov and www.senate.gov
Please consider this short guidance and talking points below:
- Ask to speak to the legislative assistant who handles defense issues. If unavailable, ask to speak to the legislative staffer who handles the Judiciary Committee and Constitutional issues. Avoid speaking to the receptionist, as this person generally is a junior staffer and does not have legislative responsibilities. Please be sure to take down the name of the Congressional staffer and keep notes on the content of your conversation.
- Ask if the Congressman or Senator believes that a decorated military officer should face jail time for upholding his sworn oath to the Constitution- and for seeking assurance that his military orders were legal-- issued by a lawful Commander-in-Chief, when a copy of Barack Obama's original birth certificate would cost less than $20 to obtain?
- (Keep in mind that the Obama online Certification of Live Birth which appeared on some websites in 2008 is NOT an original birth certificate- it is a laser-printed, computer generated document- the original 1961 birth filing-- which produced the two newspapers announcements in Hawaiian papers, remains concealed at Barack Obama's directive). Also remember that the State of Hawaii has never claimed that the Certification of Live Birth is a state-issued document. Realize most Members of Congress who've answered letters on the eligibility issue believe Obama was "natural born" because they believed he was born in Hawaii- therefore, press them on this next question:
- Why has no hospital in Hawaiil claimed to be the birthplace of Obama and why were two hospital names given out to the press (first, Queens Medical Center and then Kapi'olani)?- and why has no doctor or midwife's name been identified by any Obama spokesman? What possible explanation could be there be for the lack of a hospital name or attending physician- two standard data points common to original birth certificates?
- Finally, ask if the Congressman is willing to speak up to and demand Obama act to avert a possible jail sentence for LTC Lakin for staying true to his sworn oath and for doing his duty- to uphold the U.S. Constitution. (and remember, ALL Members of Congress also take an oath to support the U.S. Constitution).
You Can Also Contact New Members of Congress (not yet sworn in)
Click here for an excel spreadsheet of this data.
Senate: DE: ChrisCoons / 302-322-1140
Senate: IN: DanCoats / 317-251-2200
Senate: KS: JerryMoran / 202-225-2715
Senate: WV: JoeManchin / 304-558-2000
Senate: AR: JohnBoozman / 202-225-4301
Senate: ND: JohnHoeven / 701-328-2200
Senate: NH: KellyAyotte / 603-232-1162
Senate: FL: MarcoRubio / 786-953-6711
Senate: IL: MarkKirk / 202-225-4835 or 847-940-0202
Senate: UT: MikeLee / 801-784-0052 or 801-538-1041
Senate: PA: PatToomey / 484-809-7994
Senate: KY: RandPaul / 1-866-232-9747
Senate: CT: RichardBlumenthal / 860-560-2010
Senate: WI: RonJohnson / 920-230-7070
Senate: MO: RoyBlunt / 202-225-6536


text:
New Anglican bishop humbled by welcome
THE financial difficulties facing the Bathurst Anglican diocese have come as no surprise the region's new bishop.
Ian Palmer was installed as the new Anglican Bishop of Bathurst during a traditional consecration service at All Saints' Cathedral on Saturday.
He is taking over a diocese that stretches from Cowra to the Queensland border and Cobar to Kandos and is facing significant financial difficulties.
The diocese started a program of asset sales in 2011 and Bishop Palmer yesterday said he would continue working through those issues.
"I don't think it's any secret that the diocese does face financial challenges," he said.
"I have known about the financial challenges of this diocese for some time because the Diocese of Canberra and Goulburn, where I was a senior priest, was working on ways for the two diocese to support and help each other."
Bishop Palmer said the church needed to focus on its core roles during difficult times.
"I think we can meet the challenges we face by concentrating on our core business, which is drawing people into the worship of God and living in a way that expresses our love for God in and through our love for our neighbours," he said.
A packed cathedral welcomed Bishop Palmer as the 10th Bishop of Bathurst.
Among the well wishers was Catholic Bishop Michael McKenna and Bishop Palmer said he looked forward to working with other faiths across the diocese.
"We have a very close working relationship with Bishop Michael and also the Uniting Church, and that's something that extends to each part of the diocese," he said.
"Bishop Michael was at the consecration and it was a delight to meet him and welcome him to that."
Bishop Palmer said he had been humbled by the warm welcome he had received since arriving in the diocese.
"I have been really grateful for the welcome people have given me and my wife, Elizabeth, as we've moved into Bathurst," he said.
"A bishop does have a significant role in the church, obviously, but also as somebody who is a guide, a coach, a leader and a pastoral carer in the wider community.
"But the bishop also has a special responsibility for the life of the Anglican Church in this wonderfully large diocese and I think that a bishop should model for the Christian community and the wider community what it is to be someone who is deeply aware of both the spiritual things in life and the practical things in life."
Bishop Palmer led his first Sunday service at All Saints' Cathedral yesterday, followed by a morning tea with parishioners in the church hall.
Discuss "New Anglican bishop humbled by welcome"
Please note: All comments made or shown here are bound by the Online Discussion Terms & Conditions.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Featuring a book by Jonathan Caren, music and lyrics by Emmy Award-winning composer and songwriter Ben Decter, the 8 PM readings have musical direction by Kyle Puccia.
"This project is a labor of love for us...and something we've enjoyed developing from the ground up," said director Hanggi in a statement. "I've always thought of this musical as John Lennon's quote – 'Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans.' I'm really interested in exploring all the optimism of youth and our dreams, and how life grows us by the events that happen along the way."
Added composer and lyricist Decter, "After several aborted attempts at exploring the early years of being a Dad through words alone, I finally turned to songwriting. It just so happened that Kristin Hanggi was given a CD, and thus began the deep development process. Kristin promised on day one that this would be a long, challenging journey. Yet, we keep moving forward, onward, and upward and that's actually what this story is about. It's amazing how our show, and all of us, have grown through the process – especially the little girl who was the original inspiration for this story."
The Future Perfect, according to press notes, "is a story about a singer and his band on the verge of their dreams, but behind the scenes his family is falling apart. While the band deals with their newfound fame, Daniel is dealing with his newfound daughter and her ensuing medical crisis, which will require more love than he ever imagined. In The Future Perfect, we follow a young man's struggle to accept a different vision of himself, his daughter and the future. It's a musical about going for your dreams, and being surprised by what you find along the way..."
Hothouse at The Playhouse "cultivates writers, actors and directors of all backgrounds through new play development." To make a reservation, click here or by call (626) 356-7529.


text:
7-Piece Black Resin Wicker Outdoor Furniture Bar Dining Set - Beige Cushions
Sign-In to Show Pricing
Quantity Due In:
Expected Arrival Date:
Decorative weaved black trim gives the look of being made from braided rattan
Clear glass table top
Beige cushions
Rust-proof aluminum frame
Some assembly required
All weather resistant for indoor/outdoor use
Cushions attach to stools with 2 hook and loop fasteners
Machine washable cushions - cold water, hang to dry
Set includes:
6 - bar stools
1 - bar table
Table: 42" high x 78" wide x 39" deep
Bar stool: 28" high x 20" wide x 16" deep
Cushion: 2" high x 20" wide
Material(s): resin/aluminum frame/glass/fabric cushions
Note: Set comes with 6 cushions, 1 for each bar stool. Cushions not shown in photo
Note: Shipment details will be emailed to you, and your delivery date will be scheduled via telephone, after your order has been completed. During the checkout process, please provide the best contact information for us to reach you.
Note:due to the over-sized nature of this item, it can only be shipped to the lower 48 states


text:
Venezuela Shuts Down Internet, TV Stations To Stifle Protests
from the i've-seen-this-movie-before dept
At some point, governments around the world are going to start learning that attempting to stifle free speech and communication via protests and the internet is almost always going to backfire on the offending government. Previous iterations of this plotline have been demonstrated in Ukraine, Egypt, and several other Middle East nations that participated in the so-called "Arab Spring."
Well, welcome to South America, governmental hubris, because there are now reports of the government shutting down the internet in Venezuela, where protests against the government and threats of toppling it have been raging.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation made note that Venezuelans working with several different ISPs lost all connectivity on Thursday of this past week. Users lost connectivity to the major content delivery network Edgecast and the IP address which provides access to Twitter's image hosting service while another block stopped Venezuelan access to the text-based site Pastebin.Even though the attempt to shift blame for internet shutdown on outside hack attacks is a very common kind of government bullshit, it might just be believable, if only that same government wasn't also going around and shutting down television stations that were saying things the government didn't like. In the case of NTN24, a Venezuelan cable news channel, the government isn't even trying to pretend the shutdown isn't politically motivated.
CONATEL director William Castillo suggests that the internet cuts were not due to the protests directly. CONATEL is the country's media regulation network, and Castillo suggested via Noticias24 that online attacks were being waged. CONATEL, he suggests, blocked linkes "where public sites were being attacked."
Venezuela's president said that a Colombia-based cable news channel was ordered to be removed from cable lineups in Venezuela because of its coverage of an antigovernment protest. President Nicolás Maduro said Thursday that the channel, NTN24, had tried to "foment anxiety about a coup d'état." He said that he gave the order to pull the channel because "No one is going to come from abroad and try to perturb the psychological climate of Venezuela."No, no, of course not Senor Maduro, you're perfectly capable of perturbing the psychological climate of Venezuela all by yourself. As with Egypt, and Tunisia, and most recently Ukraine, this won't work. In fact, it's likely again going to have the opposite effect of provoking the protesters even more than they've been already. At some point the lesson will eventually be learned that in an era where free speech and citizen press have been expanded exponentially, attempts to shut both down won't be tolerated.
Perhaps President Maduro would like to speak with Viktor Yanukovych, if he wasn't in hiding from people on whom he attempted to put these exact same restrictions.
Filed Under: censorship, protest, south america, venezuela


text:
Swati Biswas
Department of Mathematical Sciences
Contact Information
The University of Texas at Dallas
Department of Mathematics, FO 35
800 West Campbell Road
Richardson, TX 75080-3021, USA
Office: FO 3.704K
Phone: 972-883-6686
Fax: 972-883-6622
B.Sc., Statistics, University of Delhi, India, 1994
M.Sc., Statistics, University of Delhi, India, 1996
Ph.D., Biostatistics, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, 2003
Post doctoral, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 2005
Research Interests
Peer-Reviewed Publications (Note: The underlined co-authors are my former/current students)
1. Biswas, S., Papachristou, C., Irwin, M. and Lin, S. (2003) "Linkage analysis of the simulated data Evaluations and comparisons of methods", BMC Genetics, 4:S70.
2. Biswas, S. and Lin, S. (2004) "Evaluations of maximization procedures for estimating linkage parameters under heterogeneity", Genetic Epidemiology, 26:206-217.
3. Lin, S. and Biswas, S. (2004) "On modeling locus heterogeneity using mixture distributions", BMC Genetics, 5:29.
4. Biswas, S. and Berry, D.A. (2005) "Determining joint carrier probabilities of cancer causing genes using Markov chain Monte Carlo methods", Genetic Epidemiology, 29:141-154.
5. Biswas, S., Lin, S., and Berry, D.A. (2005) "A new Bayesian approach incorporating covariate information for heterogeneity and its comparison with HLOD", BMC Genetics, 6:S138.
6. Biswas, S. and Lin, S. (2006) "A Bayesian approach for incorporating variable rates of heterogeneity in linkage analysis", Journal of the American Statistical Association, 101:1341-1351.
7. Huang, X., Biswas, S., Estey, E. H., and Berry, D.A. (2006) "Building and validating a prognostic index for biomarker studies", Cancer Biomarkers, 2:97-101.
8. Huang, X., Biswas, S., Oki, Y., Issa, J-P., and Berry, D.A. (2007) "A parallel phase I/II clinical trial design for combination therapies", Biometrics 63:429-436.
9. Biswas, S. and Lin, S. (2007) "Incorporating covariates in mapping heterogeneous traits A hierarchical model using empirical Bayes estimation", Genetic Epidemiology, 31:684-696.
10. Biswas, S., Liu, D.D., Lee, J.J and Berry, D.A. (2009) "Bayesian Clinical Trials at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center", Clinical Trials, 6:205-216.
11. Ahmad, N., Biswas, S., Bae, S., Meador, K., Huang, R., and Singh, K. (2009) "Association between obesity and asthma in US children and adolescents", Journal of Asthma, 46:642-646.
12. Biswas, S. and Papachristou, C. (2010) "Accounting for Disease Model Uncertainty in Mapping Heterogeneous Traits - A Bayesian Model Averaging Approach", Human Heredity, 69:242-253.
13. Biswas, S. and Lin, S. (2012) "Logistic Bayesian LASSO for Identifying Association with Rare Haplotypes and Application to Age-Related Macular Degeneration", Biometrics, 68:587-597.
14. Biswas, S., Tankhiwale, N., Blackford, A., Gutierrez Barrera, A.M., Ready, K., Lu, K., Amos, C.I., Parmigiani, G., Arun, B. (2012) "Assessing the Added Value of Breast Tumor Markers in Breast Cancer Genetic Risk Prediction Model BRCAPRO", Breast Cancer Research and Treatment, 133:347-355.
15. Lingineni, R., Biswas, S., Ahmad, N., Jackson, B., Bae, S., Singh, K.P. (2012) "Risk Factors for Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Among US Children: Results from a National Survey", BMC Pediatrics, 12:50.
16. Shetty P.K., Thamake S.I., Biswas, S., Johansson S.L. and Vishwanatha J.K. (2012) "Reciprocal Regulation of Annexin A2 and EGFR with Her-2 in Her-2 Negative and Herceptin-Resistant Breast Cancer", PLOS One, 7(9):e44299.
17. Biswas, S., Atienza, P., Chipman, J., Hughes, K., Gutierrez Barrera, A.M., Amos, C.I., Arun, B., Parmigiani, G. (2013) "Simplifying Clinical Use of the Genetic Risk Prediction Model BRCAPRO", Breast Cancer Research and Treatment, 139: 571-579.
18. Biswas, S. and Papachristou, C. (2014) "Evaluation of Logistic Bayesian LASSO for Identifying Association with Rare Haplotypes", BMC Proceedings, 8(Suppl 1): S54.
19. Satten, G.A., Biswas, S., Papachristou, C., Turkmen, A., and König, I.R. (2014) "Population-based association and gene by environment interactions in the Genetic Analysis Workshop 18", Genetic Epidemiology, 38: S49-S56.
20. Biswas, S.*, Xia, S., and Lin, S.* (2014) "Detecting Rare Haplotype-Environment Interaction with Logistic Bayesian LASSO", Genetic Epidemiology, 38: 31-41.
21. Biswas, S., Arun, B., and Parmigiani, G. (2014) "Reclassification of Predictions for Uncovering Sub-Group Specific Improvement", Statistics in Medicine, 33: 1914 - 1927.
22. Lykens, K., Moayad, N., Biswas, S., Reyes-Ortiz, C., Singh, K.P. (2014) "Impact of a community based implementation of REACH II Program for caregivers of Alzheimer's patients", PLOS One , 9(2): e89290.
23. Zhang, Y. and Biswas, S. (2015) "An Improved Version of Logistic Bayesian LASSO for Detecting Rare Haplotype-Environment Interactions With Application to Lung Cancer", Cancer Informatics, 14(S2): 11-16.
25. Mazzola, E., Blackford, A., Parmigiani, G., and Biswas, S. (2015) "Recent Enhancements to the genetic risk prediction model BRCAPRO", Cancer Informatics, 14(S2): 147-157.
24. Datta, A.S., Zhang, Y., Zhang, L., and Biswas, S. (2016) "Association of Rare Haplotypes on ULK4 and MAP4 Genes with Hypertension", BMC Proceedings, 10(Suppl 7):44.
26. Datta, A.S. and Biswas, S. (2016) "Comparison of Haplotype-based Statistical Tests for Disease Association with Rare and Common Variants", Briefings in Bioinformatics, 17:657-671.
27. Biswas, S., Atienza, P., Chipman, J., Blackford, A.L., Arun, B., Hughes, K., Parmigiani, G. (2016) "A Two-Stage Approach to Genetic Risk Assessment in Primary Care", Breast Cancer Research and Treatment, 155: 375-383.
28. Franklin, G., Harari, H., Ahsan, S., Bello, D., Sterling, D.A., Nedrelow, J., Raynaud, S., Biswas, S., Liu, Y. (2016) "Residual isocyanates in medical devices and products: A qualitative and quantitative assessment", Environmental Health Insights, 10: 1-16.
29. Zhang, Y., Lin, S., and Biswas, S. (2017) "Detecting Rare and Common Haplotype-Environment Interaction under Uncertainty of Gene-Environment Independence Assumption", Biometrics, 73:344-355.
30. Chowdhury, M., Euhus, D., Onega, T., Biswas, S.*, Choudhary, P.K.* (2017) "A Model for Individualized Risk Prediction of Contralateral Breast Cancer", Breast Cancer Research and Treatment, 161:153-160.
31. Zhang, Y., Hofmann, J., Purdue, M., Lin, S.*, and Biswas, S.* (2017) "Logistic Bayesian LASSO for Genetic Association Analysis of Data from Complex Sampling Designs", Journal of Human Genetics, 62:819-829.
32. Chowdhury, M., Euhus, D., O'Donnell, M., Onega, T., Choudhary, P.K.*, Biswas, S.* (2018) "Dose-Dependent Effect of Mammographic Breast Density on the Risk of Contralateral Breast Cancer", Breast Cancer Research and Treatment, 170:143-148.
33. Chowdhury, M., Euhus, D., Banu, A., Umbricht, C., Biswas, S.*, Choudhary, P.K.* (2018) "Validation of a Personalized Risk Prediction Model for Contralateral Breast Cancer", Breast Cancer Research and Treatment, 170:415-423.
34. Li, X., Choudhary, P., Biswas, S., Wang, S. (2018) "A Bayesian Latent Variable Approach to Aggregation of Partial and Top Ranked Lists in Genomic Studies", Statistics in Medicine, 37:4266-4278.
35. Datta, A.S., Lin, S., Biswas, S. (2018) "A Family-Based Rare Haplotype Association Method for Quantitative Traits", Human Heredity, 83:175-195.
36. Papachristou, C. and Biswas, S. (2019) "Comparison of Haplotype-based Statistical Tests for Detecting Rare Haplotype-Environment Interactions", Briefings in Bioinformatics, bbz031, https://doi.org/10.1093/bib/bbz031bbz031.
37. Yuan, X. and Biswas, S. (2019) "Bivariate Logistic Bayesian LASSO for Detecting Rare Haplotype Association with Two Correlated Phenotypes", Genetic Epidemiology, 43:996-1017.
38. Zhang, L., Papachristou, C., Choudhary, P.K., and Biswas, S. (2020) "A Bayesian Hierarchical Framework for Pathway Analysis in Genome-Wide Association Studies", Human Heredity, in press.
*Co-Corresponding authors
Other Publications
1. Archer, K.J., Dobbin, K, Biswas, S., Day, R.S., Wheeler, D.C. and Wu, H. (2015) "Introductory Editorial: Computer Simulation, Bioinformatics, and Statistical Analysis of Cancer Data and Processes", Cancer Informatics, Suppl. 2:247-251.
Grants and Contracts
1. Title: A Bayesian Meta-Analysis Approach for Estimation of Penetrance and its Application to PALB2 gene for Breast Cancer Risk, Funding Agency: NCI/NIH, R03CA242562-01A1, Role: PI, 3/6/20 - 3/31/22
2. Title: Risk Prediction for Substance Use Disorders, Funding Agency: UT Dallas, SPIRe seed grant, Role: PI, 07/01/2019 - 12/31/2020
3. Title: Collaborative Research: A Texan Partnership towards a Diverse PhD Pool in Mathematics, Funding Agency: NSF, DMS-1820765, Role: Co-PI, 09/01/2018 - 08/31/2021 (PI: V Dragovic)
4. Title: A Model for Individualized Risk Prediction of Contralateral Breast Cancer, Funding Agency: NCI/NIH, R21 CA186086-01, Role: PI, 09/01/2014 - 08/31/2018
5. Title: Efficacy Study of A Nicotine Barrier Cream, Funding Agency: CDC/UNT Health Science Center, R03-OH009815-01A1, Role: Co-I, 09/01/2014 - 08/31/2015 (PI: Y Liu)
6. *Title: Genetic Risk Prediction in Primary Care, Funding Agency: NCI/NIH, R03 CA173834-01, Role: PI, 01/01/2013 - 12/31/2016.
*This project was also selected for funding by the Cancer Prevention Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT).
7. Title: Modeling Reclassification of Predictions, Funding Agency: Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Role: PI, 01/01/2014 - 06/30/2014
8. Title: Identifying rare haplotype-environment interactions using Logistic Bayesian Lasso, Funding Agency: NCI/NIH, R03 CA171011-01, Role: PI, 07/10/2012 - 06/30/2015
9. Title: Preliminary Evidence for a Two-Stage Approach for Adapting BRCAPRO to Primary Clinical Settings, Funding Agency: Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Role: PI, 10/01/2011 - 09/30/2012
10. Title: Evaluation of Tarrant County United Way Healthy Aging and Independent Living Initiative, Funding Agency: United Way of Tarrant County, Role: Co-I, Duration: 07/01/2010 - 06/30/2012 (PI: K Lykens).
11. Title: Improvement and Validation of BRCAPRO, Funding Agency: Susan G Komen for Cure, KG081303, Role: Co-I, Duration: 09/01/2009 - 07/31/2011 (PI: G Parmigiani).
12. Title: Validation of a Statistical Model for Prediction of Carrying Breast/Ovarian Cancer Susceptibility Genes BRCA1 and BRCA2, Funding agency: UNTHSC SPH Intramural Seed Grant, Role: PI, Duration: 10/06/2008 - 10/06/2009.
13. Title: Post-Baccalaureate Research Education Program and Retention Enhancement (PREPARE), Funding Agency: National Institute of General Medical Sciences, NIH, R25 GM078398-01, Role: Evaluation Coordinator, Duration: 09/30/2006 - 08/31/2010 (PI: JK Vishwanatha).
14. Title: Statistical methods for gene mapping - a new paradigm, Funding Agency: NHGRI/NIH, R01 5HG002657-03, Role: Consultant, Duration: 8/20/2005 - 12/31/2006 (PI: S. Lin)
Back to the department website


text:
2102 - Types of Protective Relays
- Course Delivery: On Demand
- Duration: 4
The objectives of this module is to demonstrate the operation of the most common types of protective relay. This in turn will prepare the participant for succeeding modules which deal with protective schemes often using a combination of these relays. After study of this module, the participants should be able to understand the following overall concepts and apply them to their day-to-day work activities. They will also be able to answer related test questions on these subjects: Components of the differential relay, Where differential protection is applied, The differential principle - bus protection, Transformer differential protection, Restraint and harmonic restraint, Components of the overcurrent relay, Instantaneous overcurrent protection, Time-over current protection, Adjustment of pick-up and time dial, Construction of directional relays, The need for directional elements, Operation of directional relays, The induction cylinder relay, Operation of distance relays - balanced beam and MHO type, Circle diagrams, Effect of load impedance, Three-zone elements; back-up protection.
If you are taking this course for NERC credit, the following credits will be reported.
NERC CE HOURS: CE HOURS = 4.00 OPS Topics=4.00 Standards=0.00 Simulation=0.00 EO=0.00
Course Objectives
Learning Objectives:
- Trainees will be able to explain the principle of differential protection and describe where this type of protection is typically employed.
- Trainees will be able to describe the features of the differential relay.
- Trainees will be able to describe features and functions of typical instantaneous and inverse time overcurrent relays
- Trainees will be able to describe different types of inverse time characteristics for inverse time overcurrent relays
- Trainees will be able to explain why directional relays are needed and be able to describe a typical installation
- Trainees will be able to explain the concept of measuring impedance to detect power system faults
- Trainees will be able to describe the operation of the balanced beam type of relay, as well as some of its limitations
- Trainees will be able to describe the characteristics of a MHO relay and be able to explain its operation
- Trainees will be able to explain the importance of back-up protection and be able to describe common techniques used to implement it
Topics Covered
Segment A-1: Transformer insulating oil testingSegment A-2: Insulation oil samplingSegment A-3: Aging of transformer and insulating oilSegment A-4: Transformer fault conditions and gasesSegment A-5: Interpretation of fault gas analysisSegment B-1: Dielectric strength and water content testingSegment B-2: Oil acidity testingSegment B-3: Other oil testsSegmant C-1: Closed cycle lubricating systemsSegment C-2: Liquid viscositySegment C-3: Oil oxidationSegment C-4: Contamination test techniques 1Segment C-5: Contamination test technique 2Segment D-1: Monitoring water systemsSegment D-2: Water system corosionSegment D-3: Suspended and disolved solids in water systems
End of Course Instructions
Congratulations on completing the course! Your credits earned on completion of this program will be reported to RCEP.net within 30 days of completion. Once we report your completion at RCEP.net, you will receive a certificate of completion provided by RCEP on the email address you have provided at the time of enrollment. Please keep the certificate for your record. You may be required to submit this certificate to the state to record your PDH or present it in case if you are audited. If you have any questions or concerns please contact customer service at http://www.360trainingsupport.com
Why Choose 360training.com?
- Fast and easy courses completion
- Get an education faster than at traditional colleges!
- 100% online - No classroom attendance required.
- Online customer support
- Over 500,000+ certified nationwide.


text:
After spending the last eight months in jail accused of a crime he didn't commit, Tim Rogers said he isn't angry, even if he did miss a memorable moment in his son's life.
After spending the last eight months in jail accused of a crime he didn't commit, Tim Rogers said he isn't angry, even if he did miss a memorable moment in his son's life.
"I've got a 2-year-old boy that my sister raised for me," Rogers said. "I missed out on his first words ... that is something that can never be replaced."
Rogers and a friend, Glen Johnson, were arrested July 1 on rape charges based on the accusation of a woman whom Rogers said he met June 12. She told police the men met her at a Kirksville gas station, drove her out to a gravel road outside of the city limits and raped her.
Despite the lack of any physical or medical evidence, witnesses or other corroborating evidence, the two men, who had never been convicted of a felony, were arrested within days. With cash-only bonds of $150,000 and $100,000 respectively, Rogers and Johnson remained in custody until Monday, when the charges were dropped by the state attorney general's office.
According to Johnson's attorney, Ed Campbell, the state dropped the charges after releasing cell phone records that contradicted the accuser's testimony.
"Bottom line is there was finally evidence produced to reflect she was actually text messaging people when she claimed she was being raped," Campbell said.
Public defender Kevin Locke, who represented Rogers, said there were numerous inconsistencies in this case.
"Working with Ed Campbell's office, we were able to develop some evidence that created several doubts about her claims," Locke said. "From all appearances, she lied about this, and it took us this long to prove it."
Campbell called it a very unfortunate situation.
"There needs to be something done that there is some physical evidence required to hold a person in jail," he said. "For these guys to sit in jail for the amount of time they sat in jail with the evidence that was out there, is absolutely ludicrous."
Adair County Prosecutor Mark Williams quickly turned the case over to the attorney general's office due to assistant prosecutor's Kristin Coffman defense of Rogers on a previous rape charge in 2000, for which he was acquitted. However, the charges were still filed by an Adair County grand jury in August 2008.
"That's the whole problem with the grand jury," Campbell said. "They only hear one side of the story, her side. In my opinion, this is a terrible miscarriage of justice, and it's a terrible price these two had to pay."
During his first night of freedom since July, Rogers simply tried making up for the lost time.
"I stayed home with my son," he said. "I've lost practically everything. I'm just glad I got to keep him."
Daily Express


text: The AD7719 is a complete analog front end for low frequency measurement applications. It contains two high resolution sigmadelta ADCs, switchable matched excitation current sources, low-side power switches, digital I/O port, and temperature sensor. The 24-bit main channel with PGA accepts fully differential, unipolar, and bipolar input signal ranges from 1.024 x REFIN1/128 to 1.024 x REFIN1. Signals can be converted directly from a transducer without the need for signal conditioning. The 16-bit auxiliary channel has an input signal range of REFIN2 or REFIN2/2.


text:
Rants on Cycling and on Life:
Photos of people and bicycles that pass in front of my camera
I think I need to order this...
Oh man, I can't believe that is on DVD now. I have to get that too; I haven't seen it in years.
Post a Comment


text:
Hope this is on topic for this stackexchange.
I recently bought a lamp from the US and had it shipped to Australia. Stupidly I powered it straight off the mains through an adapter. The device is rated at 120V 60Hz and Australian mains are 240V 60Hz. The lamp turned on for a split second and wouldn't power on at all after that. The device has a fuse in the back of it that appears to still be whole, the manual says this should be replaced if the lamp no longer dims correctly.
Have I written off the device or is it possible that it has remained intact? (I know it is impossible to say definitively but some information would be of great help)


text:
...aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand, we're back.
Shitehawk isn't around today, but he's given me the keys to the place for the time being. Allow me to introduce myself: I'm Shitehawk's Senseless Apprentice, and I'll be running this show on Mondays moving forward. You wanna impress me? Make a funny joke, idiot. Here we go:
Favorites, in no particular order
Same Sad Echo started the day off right with a silly joke in the Swaggy P post. This made me laugh and then feel bad at myself for laughing. Nice job.
Hit Bull Win Steak didn't get 2200+ recommendations for this dumb little joke in the Baylor Bros post, but it was funny nonetheless.
New guy gullyb with some nasty wordplay in the Worst Fans post. Both aspects of this joke (a Korey Stringer "shock" joke, and plays on the word "fan") have been done before, but gullyb put them together nicely here. Stick around, you done well. In fact, this is the Comment of the Day.
Relatively new guy fusilliGaryBettman with an absolutely ridiculous pull in the LeBron Mom post. It is so stupid, yet I couldn't help but laugh at the stupidity. And now that song is in my head. Jerk. (LATE EDIT: Holy shit, check out this response.)
It seemed to be lost on a few people, but DougExeter actually made a good joke, with the subject matter being rape, in the Heisman Voter post. Well done, Doug, I'm sure you're glad that your joke inspired such great discussion below. Try to stay above the fray next time; dismiss the (bad) idiots.
BloodGames (who it appears used to be known as White_Johnson) got creative with this poem in the Robinson Cano post. That kind of stuff flies here, and it was done very well.
RMJ=H with an idiot joke in the Super Bowl Tailgating post. Apparently, though, you can't make enough of an idiot joke that it won't inspire earnestly stupid responses. Again, if only there was a way to dismiss these types of comments...
50ShadesOfJimGray made me chuckle with this offering in the Nate Robinson Cramp post. Yes, it's well-worn ground, but it was executed nicely, and I laughed. Sue me.
Total Fucking Duds
Complete idiot Joseph Finn dropped by to rail against baseball cheaters in the Heisman Voter post. Unhappily, Mr. Finn is a regular around these parts, in the way that people who defecate normally are called "regular."
disgustofcos with a cool story, bro in the Nate Robinson Cramp post. This has the classic double-whammy of both offering absolutely nothing of value, while also being an opportunity for this guy to brag about himself. Get bent.
Pretty much every comment in the Jameis Winston opinion piece was a steaming pile of crap, as was every Delonte West joke in the LeBron post. If you think I'm gonna list all of the duds, well then, buddy, don't think that.
Thanks to all for showing up today. Let's do our best to drive out the idiots by sheer numbers and turn the non-grey part of the comments back to a fun place to be. Don't forget to +1 good jokes and if there's anything that you feel was missed, point it out below.


text:
by Mark Horner
Own a boat (or know someone who does)? Here's an important story.
Due to state budget cuts, registration renewal reminders for boats are no longer being sent out in the mail. However, there's a simple solution.
Boat owners can sign-up to receive renewal reminders by email. Signing-up typically takes a minute-or-less on the Department of Licensing's website.
Yep—it's really simple, really fast, and super convenient.
If you know other boat owners, it's likely that they'd want to know about this change and would also like to continue receiving boat renewal reminders. Feel free to share this blog post. If you have a website or blog, you're certainly welcome to embed the video below into your site.


text:
Displaying 1-1 of 1 result.
Startups and apps
This collection is aimed at helping you present your tech startups or apps in English. You can memorize useful phrases for presenting, pitching, being interviewed on your product or service. Use the same clever collocations as successful startups used and still use in their interviews clipped from tech blogs. Such as: "Ping was born from a personal frustration with having a...", "Our Aim is To Bridge The Gap Between...", "At the core of the app lies a clever algorithm that allows" etc.
- A console that keeps up with gaming PCs
- Developing the right user interface is another vital step toward making headsets mainstream.
- And the mobile device is paving the way for the next milestone
- but it's safe to predict that AR headsets will be part of the picture.
- and their respective developers immediately set to work creating new consumer-oriented AR games and apps.


text:
CHAPTER SIX - 1983 U.S. Pan Am Trials
The U.S. Pan Am Trials were held Mar. 15-21 at Colorado Springs. Dennis Masters will cover the Men's for us, then Shazzi Felstein will follow with the Women's.
Men's Play
"At 9:00 a.m. on Tuesday, Mar. 15, Yvonne Kronlage, my son Brian, and I left our homes in Columbia, MD to catch our flight to Colorado. At the airport we met Larry Hodges and Barney Reed who were scheduled to fly with us (Barney and his wife had driven over from Harrisburg, PA and she had then returned home, a two-hour drive).
At first we were told that there'd be an hour delay, but when the hour was up, we were down—for they'd canceled the flight. We started to make reservations on an afternoon plane, but before we could complete them, that flight too was canceled. So we made reservations on a plane out the next morning and were about to leave the airport when I figured why not be on the safe side and make reservations on the Wednesday evening flight as well.
On Tuesday evening we got a phone call telling us our Wednesday morning flight had been cancelled. That was not good news of course; still, I was pleased that we'd taken the precaution of making reservations on the evening plane. But when I tried to confirm our seats on this flight I was told that someone had cancelled out Brian and me and that the plane was completely booked. It took a number of phone calls and several hours before Brian and I were back on the list (supposedly our names had been misspelled).
On Wednesday afternoon, Yvonne, Brian, and I again arrived at the airport—this time to meet Donna Newell and Dave Sakai. Again we were told that our flight had been delayed—by 1 and ½ hours. Of course we were fearful of more complications, but finally we did get on board and our plane did leave—with just enough time for us to make our Colorado Springs connection out of Denver.
Later, just about the time we were due to land in Denver, the pilot announced that we would have to circle for 40 minutes. 'Don't worry,' he said, 'most connecting flights will also be delayed.'
On getting off the plane we hurried to a different part of the terminal…only to find our flight to Colorado Springs had left.
So, what to do? Maybe we could catch a bus? No luck that way. I checked with the other commuter airlines and found that one had a flight leaving in 10 minutes. So I ran to grab Yvonne and Brian, but when I returned with them the flight was full. Hurry, someone said, there was another flight at the end of the airport. So we dashed crazily for that…and found it completely booked. All we could do was get wait-listed and hope.
Randy Seemiller was scheduled for the same flight—that was good. But when more and more people with reservations kept showing up, I was afraid we weren't going to get on. Eventually we did, however, and arrived in Colorado Springs on Thursday at 12:30 a.m.—minus of course our luggage.
We met Sol Schiff, Sean O'Neill, Scott Butler, Brian Eisner, Lim Ming Chui, and Liana Panesko—all had had similar problems. Sol hired a van and Bill Haid got someone to open the Registration Office. That night there wasn't much sleep for any of us.
On Wednesday morning after breakfast we had a meeting and saw a short film. By then everyone had arrived or would shortly be arriving—except for three women and four men. We then found out that five women weren't coming and that most likely two of the men wouldn't make it. What about the other two—Jimmy Lane and Charles Butler? Jimmy was scheduled to come in Late Friday night and Charles had called Bill Haid on Monday saying he was on his way from Germany.
I decided to look around the USOC headquarters and quickly discovered it was a great place for athletes to train: the food was good, the accommodations good, and the playing facility great.
They had 14 tables, but only eight Joolas—which would be used for the Trials. We figured we'd better start Friday night and run the first two rounds of the Prelims. [In both the Men's and Women's, eight players had been selected to play in these Trials and 16 more had qualified through Regional Trials. Now here in Colorado Springs, the top four players from each of three groups would advance (with carry-overs) to the Final Round Robin of 12—out of which would come the five men and four women who would make up the U.S. Team that would play in the Pan Am Games Aug. 14-29 at Caracas, Venezuela.]
On Friday afternoon Neal Fox made up the draws and included both Jimmy and Charles. It was decided that if they arrived before 10:30 Saturday morning we could allow them to make up the matches, but if they didn't they'd have to be defaulted. It'd been snowing since we arrived, and since a heavy snow was predicted, we weren't sure whether they would make it in even if they tried to.
On Friday afternoon Charles called. He was in New York and wanted to know if he should bother coming; if he did come he would be out of money when he got to Denver. Sol told him to come, said a ticket would be waiting for him there.
We started to play on Friday at 7:00 p.m. Lane arrived late Friday night but not Butler. Since it was starting to snow hard it didn't look too good for Charles.
Saturday morning the third round of the Prelims was played, and we were about ready to start the fourth when we were told that Charles had made it and was changing into his playing clothes. How, though, were Jimmy and Charles going to play every well without practicing—especially under these (6-7,000 feet high) conditions?
As it turned out, the Preliminaries went pretty much as expected—except that Mike Veillette knocked out Chui and so took his place in the Final Round Robin. (Small consolation that Lim would win the Sunday Men's Consolation event.) Brian Masters and George 'The Chief' Braithwaite were the only players advancing out of the Prelims who were undefeated. 'The Chief' was playing great and was of course in excellent shape. He told me he'd been
preparing for these Trials since the beginning of January. Late arrival Lane had two losses (to Sean O'Neill and Randy Seemiller), and struggling Charles Butler, almost out of it before he began, had three losses (to Perry Schwartzberg, Dave Sakai, and George).
After dinner we played two rounds of the Final Round Robin—and naturally there were some tough matches. When Brian lost to Sean, and "The Chief" lost to Scott Butler, five players were tied with a 4-1 record—Sean, Brian, George, Perry, and Scott.
Sunday morning Perry lost to Sean, Brian lost to Perry, and 'The Chief' lost to Dean Doyle. Then at lunch, with three rounds left to play, Sean, Brian, 'The Chief,' and Scott were all 6-2. Perry and Jimmy were 5-3. And Randy and Dean were 4-4.
Sean looked to be in good shape—he had Scott, Mike, and Charles to play. Brian was faced with 'The Chief,' Jimmy, and Charles. George had Brian, Mike, and Brandon. Perry would meet Jimmy, Dean, and Scott. Randy told me the only way he could make the Team was to win his last three matches—over Dave, Scott, and Dean. Jimmy had tough opponents to play—Perry, Brian, and Dave. And Dean had to face Brandon, Perry, and Randy. It looked clearly like anything could happen.
But with the next round the picture began to form. Sean became 7-2 when, after losing the first game to Scott, he won the next two going away. Brian became 7-2 when he beat 'The Chief' in three. Perry joined George and Scott at 6-3 when he defeated Lane in straight games. Randy joined Jimmy at 5-4 when (after a 25-23 first game) he downed Sakai two straight. Dean was at 4-5 after losing to Brandon and looked out of it.
After the next to last round some positions were clear. When Sean beat Charles two straight he was 8-2 and in. Brian's straight-game win over Lane made him 8-2 and he was in. 'The Chief' got to 7-3 with a victory over Veillette and was looking good. Perry, too, was at 7-3 after beating Doyle in straight games, and he had the advantage of a good game-record. The biggest match of the round—perhaps of the whole tournament—was Randy's 28-26-in-the-third win over Scott. Seemiller was fighting as hard as he could alright, but would he make it? Now at least he had a chance, for both he and Scott Butler had 6-4 records.
So. The last round.
Sean finished with a win over Mike. Brian, locked in like Sean, started shakily against Charles, lost the first but won the next two. 'The Chief' handled Brandon. Perry won the first game from Scott, but Scott, with his chances slipping away these last rounds, fought hard and just eked out a 19-in-the-third win. Randy, too, was in trouble, lost the first to Dean at deuce, but won the next two easily. Which meant that Perry, Randy, and Scott all ended with 7-4 records—but that it was Butler who would lose out in the tie-breaker.
Final Standings. Team members: 1. Sean O'Neill (9-2/18-6). 2. Brian Masters (9-2/16-7). 3. George Brathwaite (8-3). 4. Perry Schwartzberg (7-4/16-8). 5. Randy Seemiller (7-4/16-10).
Finishers who qualify with the Top Five for June 24-July 3 National Sports Festival: 6. Scott Butler (7-4/16-12). 7. Jim Lane (6-5). 8. Dean Doyle (4-7/11-16). 9. Brandon Olson (4-7/11-16). 10. Mike Veillette (2-9/8-19).
Alternate Sports Festival finishers: 11. Charles Butler (2-9/7-19). 12. Dave Sakai (1-10).
The players I have to say were just great. I know because Neal Fox had to fly out early Sunday morning, leaving me the entire Control Desk, and I didn't have one problem. I want to thank Sol Schiff; Chief Umpire Allen Barth; all the other umpires; Neal Fox; Bill Haid; and especially Bob Tretheway, who helped every one of us in so many ways. It was a great experience for everyone, and everyone is certainly looking forward to coming back to this USOTC training headquarters as soon as possible."
Women's Play
Shazzi says, "We arrived at the Olympic Complex at night, drove past dark buildings and open spaces. Suddenly I saw the Olympic Rings—five crossed rings with USA on top. It really hit me then, this wasn't on TV, we were actually HERE! That thrill at being part of the Olympics remained with me throughout our stay.
There were 19 women players out of a planned 24. We were a mixed group, young teenagers to mature women, from seven states—all of us with different backgrounds (but all U.S. citizens as required) brought together by our common love of table tennis, our talent and dedication. Throughout the week, despite intense competition in matches, off the tables the atmosphere remained warm and friendly among most of the players.
We played in the recently completed $6,500,000 Field House—on Joola tables in a gym with excellent lighting, plenty of room (unless you were Dean Doyle), and wood floors so beautiful they glowed. The only catch was the altitude—at 6,000 feet or so, the air is thinner, so that the ball sometimes seems to float, and you can get out of breath faster than usual. Fortunately we had several days of practice to adjust before the competition began.
When play started on Friday evening, we were divided into three Preliminary groups of 6, 6, and 7. From each of these groups four players would advance to play in a Final Round Robin of 12 that would determine the four women Pan Am Team members who would compete in Caracas, Venezuela in August. There were two upsets on Friday evening: Flora Ng beat Takako Trenholme in Group 1, and Donna Newell beat Lisa Gee in Group 3. Group 2 didn't have any upsets until Saturday morning when Hanna Butler (1711) defeated the Group's top two players, Angie Sistrunk (#2 seed) and Kasia Gaca (#4 seed). Hanna, a very talented 18-year-old lefty from Ontario, CA, used a strong forehand and steady exchanges to achieve her spectacular play. "It was like a miracle," she said later.
Angie, who'd made the 1983 U.S. World Team, had problems throughout this tournament. She'd spent the last week in bed with a severe strep throat, and [like Scott Boggan, the #2 player on the U.S. World Team who didn't want to spend the money commuting from Germany] had inquired about the possibility of being chosen for the fourth spot on the Team without competing here. On receiving [like Scott] a negative response, she'd disregarded her doctor's advice and come to play. On Saturday, she lost to Hanna, 15, -23, -18, to Diana Gee, 19, -13, -19, and to Kasia, 5, -17, -18, in consecutive matches. Her two matches Saturday evening she won, but each went three games. To someone who said she felt weak, it must have been a rough day. 'This is a whole new experience for me,' said Angie. 'Are you enjoying it?' I asked. 'Oh, to the max,' she said.
Diana not only beat Angie, she also beat Kasia and all the other players in this Group 2, so (6-0) finished first. Hanna lost only to Diana and (5-1) came in second. Kasia (4-2) was third. And Angie (3-3) fourth. Not advancing to the Final Round Robin, all with 1-5 records, were Ardith Lonnon, Shazzi Felstein, and Yvonne Kronlage who doubled as player/coach.
In Group 1, Insook Bhushan finished first (5-0). I hardly think I'm giving anything away when I say that Insook was to have a perfect record. Not only did she never lose a game, but no one ever got more than 14 points off her. Her playing (as well as her sportsmanship) was impeccable throughout. Also advancing from Group 1 was Takako Trenholme, Judy Hoarfrost, and Flora Ng (all 3-2). Not advancing were Liana Panesko (1-4) and Jamie Medvene (0-5).
In Group 3, Alice Green and Sheila O'Dougherty both advanced with 4-1 records. Alice lost to Lisa, and Sheila lost to Alice. In third place was Lisa (3-2). There was a tie for fourth between Cindy Miller and Donna Newell (both 2-3). That Cindy advanced with a better record on games was a real break for Lisa who carried over her Cindy win but not her loss to Donna. Also not advancing was Monica Rosal (0-5), making a welcome reappearance on the t.t. scene after a long absence.
Final Round Robin play began with two rounds on Saturday evening. There would be three rounds Sunday morning and three rounds Sunday afternoon. Thus each player would play the finalists from the other three groups. Insook and Diana had the best records going into the Final, each with no losses. Alice, Sheila, and Hanna had one loss. Lisa, Kasia, Takako, Judy, and Flora had two losses. Angie and Cindy had uphill battles ahead with three losses. The top 10 players (plus six more to be selected) would be invited back to this site for the National Sports Festival in late June.
The first round of the Final paired players from the same area on the theory that friends should play each other early while everyone is still fighting to win. I chose to watch Lisa and Diana Gee who warmed up together until match time. It was a well-played, not quite mirror-image match. Diana, with her Tackiness-Feint racket, was a little more aggressive, a bit quicker in the exchanges, made fewer mistakes, and so beat her sister (Sriver pips-out) fairly easily.
Altogether, in the two rounds Saturday evening, the higher-rated player beat the lower-rated player every time. This was probably the only session in which that happened, as the level of play was quite strong, with many unpredictable results. After Saturday night, Insook and Diana remained unbeaten (5-0), Sheila still had only 1 loss, Alice and Lisa had 2 losses, and Angie, Kasia, and Hanna 3 losses. Only Alice and Kasia had played Insook. (Whenever comparing win-loss records, it was necessary to take into account whether or not the losses included Insook, as it seemed very likely she would win all her matches.)
By Sunday morning, with five rounds completed and six rounds to go, every match seemed to be crucial. So far there'd been some interesting results.
SUNDAY ROUND 1: Alice won the first game from Diana, lost the second at 7, then came back strongly to win the third at 19, giving Diana her first loss. Angie beat Sheila, 19, 22, to keep her hopes alive. Cindy and Flora with 1-4 records were playing to at least make the top 10, if not the top 4. Flora won the first game, was up 20-15 in the second—and lost the match! Cindy's good serves were a big help to her as she served her way to deuce. This match was to come back to haunt Flora.
SUNDAY ROUND 2: There were two upsets in this round. Lisa won in three over Angie, but the way Angie was going, you had to stop calling her losses upsets. There was an interesting match between Kasia and Cindy (one of the few between two loopers). Cindy with a forehand loop, anti-spin backhand, and excellent serves (including a high-toss one), practiced, practiced, practiced all through the tournament. When she didn't have a partner (usually brother-in-law and coach Jeff Mason), she was out there alone practicing serves. She and Kasia played a very close first game which Kasia won at 19. In the second, Cindy up 18-17, used her serves to force high returns from Kasia that either went long or gave Cindy set-ups. One apiece. In the third game, Kasia began by missing everything. She looped her forehand and backhand off the table on every shot. As she clearly got angrier and angrier with herself, she played worse and worse. Serving at 8-17 she finally pulled herself together and started to play, got up to 17 before losing.
SUNDAY ROUND 3: As I saw Kasia heading back to the same table she had just lost on, I said, 'Stay cool, Kasia.' 'I'm just warming up getting mad,' she answered. I saw Sheila coming to the same table and thought it should be an interesting match. I didn't see the first two games, which they split, but I did see the third, in which Kasia was almost playing a repeat of her last match. She started out by missing everything, was down 11-4, then 18-12. But now Kasia was fighting. Her loops started going on and Sheila's off, and quickly Kasia had closed to deuce. Now, though, she looped Sheila's serve into the net, then down match point she served off the table! Had Kasia won this match, it would have been a huge swing, reversing her and Sheila's final standings.
At other tables, Angie lost the first to Insook, 21-13. In the second, she played an excellent point to get to 12-13. 'That's it!' she said. Moments later, Insook was up 20-12, won at 13. Meanwhile, Cindy and Judy battled. Cindy won the first at 15. In the second, Judy was up 17-13 with the serve. But this match was very much like Judy's other matches. Whenever she was in a position to win, she started missing and lost. In this case she lost the second at 19 to sink lower and lower in the standings, while Cindy was improving hers.
We went to lunch with three rounds yet to play. After lunch, I returned to my room and figured the possibilities for the Team. I decided that Insook was a lock with her 8-0 record, and Diana at 7-1 was slmost a lock. Alice at 6-2 was probably going to make it, despite having three tough matches ahead with Takako, Angie, and Kasia. Sheila and Lisa were tied at 5-3, but Sheila was in much better shape with at least two likely wins ahead (Flora and Hanna), while Lisa had a sure loss to Insook coming and a tough match with Kasia. It looked like 7-4 would probably make the Team, and 6-5 almost certainly wouldn't. Off then I went to the Field House to see what would happen.
SUNDAY ROUND 4. This round the top two women in the standings played each other. Diana's play was absolutely outstanding throughout the competition, and with her fine temperament she'll keep getting better [especially if she has newly-arrived famous Chinese coach Li Henan settling in the States and giving her tips]. But she just wasn't ready for Insook. Alice beat Takako, virtually assuring her place in the top four. Sheila's win over Flora and Lisa's loss to Kasia made it seem even likelier that Insook, Diana, Alice, and Sheila would make it. Judy beat Hanna, 9, 9 in a match that would help determine who finished in the top 10.
SUNDAY ROUND 5. When Alice discovered that she'd made the Team, she was pleased because now, she said, the pressure was off, and she could relax and play her best. Famous last words. She lost her last two matches to Kasia and Angie. Kasia and Alice pushed largely backhand to backhand, both looking for an opening—Kasia wanted to loop the forehand, Alice wanted to pick the backhand. After Kasia won the first at deuce, Alice's resistance seemed to crumble and she lost the second at 13. Sheila's loss to Diana and Lisa's win over Judy kept them tied for the fourth spot at 6-4—but Sheila would play Hanna who after that brilliant start in the Prelim's lost her game, and 14-year-old Lisa had to face Insook. Flora's win over Hanna meant that going into the last round Flora, Hanna, and Judy were tied for last at 2-8. Only one of them would finish in the top 10.
SUNDAY Round 6. No surprises. Insook did beat Lisa, and Sheila did beat Hanna. Team Trials seem to bring out the best in Sheila. Her third-place finish should help make up for her disappointing injury in Las Vegas that forced her to drop out of the World Team Trials. Alice, having lost third-place to Sheila on points, nevertheless had the distinction, like Insook, of making both the World Championship and Pan American Teams. Kasia, after a very rough Sunday morning, came back to win her last three matches and so became first alternate on the Pan Am Team. Though Judy had a bad tournament, didn't seem to have the drive to finish off her opponents, she did finish 10th, and so earned a spot in the upcoming National Sports Festival.
There'd been a round robin Sunday morning for the non-finalists, with the winner to get $20 worth of merchandise from the USTTA. However, three of the seven eligible players didn't want to play in it ('Too much of a letdown'…'My back hurts'…'Too much homework'). Ardith Lonnon played, beat her opponents in three well-played, I'm-taking-this-seriously matches. She was seen shortly afterwards wearing a nice new USTTA sweater and a smile. Said, 'This time when I call my father, I finally can say I won something.'
Since the Pan American Games would be played Corbillon-Cup style for the women with the doubles being very important, and since the rules for these Team Trials provided the possibility of selectinga fourth player so as to make the best possible doubles pairing for our Team (Insook/Angie? Insook/Kasia?) USTTA officials had perhaps both before and after considered this move, but decided not to pursue it—one reason possibly being that Alice has the next best singles record on the Team to Insook in international competition. Of course the Pan Am Games is really an important opportunity for us—a gold medal is within reach and could be a big thing for American table tennis. So I suggest the players work on women's doubles at the two Team-training-sessions prior to the Games—it could make a big difference.
My overall feelings during these Trials was that it is a wonderful thing to be affiliated with the Olympics, to have training sessions, the use of the U.S. Olympic Training Center facilities, the National Sports Festival, the Pan Am and Olympic Games. I wish it had all been there when I started playing, but at least it's here now for all of us to enjoy. It was a pleasure staying at the U.S. Olympic Training Center. Thanks to Bill and Sarah Haid, and to everyone who had a hand in organizing, sponsoring, or running this event. It ran marvelously smoothly, thanks to the well-planned organization. I loved every minute of my stay, and I think the others felt the same way." [So, Shazz, maybe you'll want the "Olympic Glory" poster?]


text:
Choose Your Own Change Thought about transformation. Like transformations in general this is the place to go to! Stop by CYOC read a story and post a few ideas with others!
FurEauction the free auction site for Furry, Fantasy, Transformation, Constuming, and other fandoms.
Lunarwolf's web page of animal, furry, fursuit fantasy critters drawn to perfection. Take them big or small Lunarwolf got them all.
Rog Minotaur's fantasy and furry website.
Home page of Techwolf, lover of werewolves and other fur bering creatures.
Thrashwolf's web site of furry, transformation art.


text:
How the hell did I miss this?
The downloadable content for Assassin's Creed III has more than a despotic King Washington going for it. It also grants new abilities to Connor, and you can see probably the most terrifying of them in this new trailer.
The "Power of the Wolf" is one thing, allowing Connor to become invisible, but Ubisoft took things too far with the "Wolf Pack" power. When activated, as you might expect from the name, this ability summons a pack of wolves which will attack enemies. What I didn't expect is that the wolves are invisible too.
Great. I'm not going to sleep for weeks now thinking that there could be a pack of translucent wolves waiting around any corner to tear my throat out. Meanwhile, the next chapter of the Tyranny of King Washington DLC for Assassin's Creed III, releases on March 19.


text: Whether it's a historic tale about the navy and pirates, or a contemporary account of submarines and military valour, we have plenty of maritime-themed fiction to keep the sailor at heart content. You can keep an eye out for the naval fiction sticker (an anchor) at both branches, or take a look at these good reads below. Have your own to recommend? Comment at the end of this post!


text:
M. Ellis and wife helping make baseball safer
DENVER -- Dodgers infielder Mark Ellis' wife, Sarah, a mother of three, read about the tragic death of an 8-year-old Little Leaguer this summer and she's doing what she can to help.
Dylan Williams was practicing for the Union City, Ind., All-Star Game when he was fatally injured. On Saturday at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati, Sarah and Mark will host Williams' teammates and participate in a ceremony before the Dodgers-Reds game to raise awareness for on-field safety and support the Dylan Williams Forever an All-Star Foundation.
Playing first base, Williams was hit on the right side of his neck by a throw, went down immediately, was rushed to a hospital and died. His family donated his organs to keep other children alive.
"We have a daughter named Dylan and with the baseball part of it, my wife was just struck by it," Ellis said. "She reached out to the town to see what we could do to help."
Ellis and the Dodgers, along with Rawlings and the Reds, will hold a pregame ceremony to raise awareness for the foundation and for proper safety preparedness at parks and ball fields.
"Union City is a very small town, maybe 5,000 total, and this has really struck them hard," Mark Ellis said. "We want to try to make a good day out of this and to raise awareness about safety in general."
Ellis and his wife are providing tickets to the game and transportation to Dylan's teammates and family. Each teammate will be presented with a Rawlings helmet to be worn on the field at all times, as Mark said he was required to do while playing American Legion youth baseball. Rawlings will donate 300 helmets for the entire league.


text:
Disputes Continue in Unpaid Workers Controversy as Negotiation Details Emerge
COLUMBIA - The controversy surrounding construction of the Aspen Heights student housing development site either could come to end Wednesday or yield continued dispute and potential lawsuits filed against the construction site, according to former site contractor R-Energy LLC.
"Aspen Heights has promised to pay R-Energy and the laborers and vendors and suppliers tomorrow. They made that announcement to my laborers last Friday before they dispersed them (by terminating the contract with R-Energy), said Texas-based R-Energy's owner and president Tony Barder.
Barder said on Wednesday, R-Energy will reveal details of its version of the story, which came to light two weeks ago when 11 construction workers from Atlanta, Ga. claimed they responded to a Craigslist ad promising $1,000 a week and free food and lodging, in exchange for work at the Aspen Heights student housing development site in Columbia.
As details emerged, the situation soon expanded to involve three hotels, a contractor, a dozen subcontractors and an estimated 100 workers--all hired by sub-contractors under R-Energy and whom all claimed they had not been fully, if at all, paid for their work at the site.
Barder said Aspen Heights has yet to pay R-Energy all but one of the draws R-Energy is owed. These draws, Barder said, are necessary in order to compensate the laborers. He explained R-Energy had made an agreement with Aspen Heights in which Aspen must either pay the draws by Wednesday or pay the vendors, suppliers and subcontractors directly. Barder also said he already has paid tens of thousands of dollars out of pocket to some of the subcontractors involved.
Aspen Heights offered KOMU 8 News a different explanation of negotiation details and whom is potentially to blame for the unpaid debts, which total a sum neither R-Energy nor Aspen Heights would disclose.
Aspen Heights's Columbia site project manager Tom Partin said Aspen is not primarily responsible for paying the workers but is helping resolve their plights.
"Obviously, within this contract, there's material and labor involved. Our main focus is dealing with the people-obviously that's associated with the labor, and that's our main focus right now. We did meet with a few of the contractors this morning, and they were very forthcoming with the information we asked for. What we're going to do this week is we're concentrating on verifying this information, and then we hope to have some resolution moving forward over the next week or two," said Partin.
Partin said he held "extremely productive" meetings with three of seven sub-contractors under R-Energy--Wilkins Development, Kapital Construction and Encisco Construction. He said as of late Tuesday, he also had made contact and scheduled meetings with two more of those contractors, whose names Partin declined to release until Wednesday. Partin said Black Sparta, the sub-contractor with whom the laborers from Atlanta claim to have been hired by, is not a direct sub-contractor under R-Energy and has not been in contact with Aspen Heights.
Encisco Construction owner Moises Encisco said he would consider trying to work for Aspen Heights again. He told KOMU 8 he believes only R-Energy is responsible for paying him and his crew of nine other men, whom he brought from Kansas City to Columbia on Dec. 28 in order to work on the site. He said his company is owed $24,000 for completed work. Encisco said in his meeting with Aspen Heights on Tuesday, Partin told him Aspen needed to calculate the percentage of work completed, as there were "some people taking advantage of the situation." Encisco said he expects to be paid by Friday or early next week.
Barder denied Encisco's claims that he had not heard from Barder since signing a contract with him and said he has been receptive to questions and concerns from all of his sub-contractors.
Both R-Energy and Aspen Heights affirmed this is the first time the two companies have worked with each other. According to Partin, Aspen Heights currently has five other projects at other universities across the nation. These projects, he said, have 20 to 30 contractors each.
Neither company indicated it would be willing conduct future projects with the other.
Aspen Heights said it still has 100 to 200 workers currently working on the site under other contractors, like the electrician. He said none of those workers includes the 50 to 100 laborers contracted under R-Energy. Partin said Aspen Heights is evaluating whether to rehire any of those laborers but affirmed the site is still on schedule to be completed by fall.


text:
|Andy and Susie Bezner, with son and daughter-in-law Nicholas and Briley Bezner, at St. Peter Parish in Lindsay. (NTC/Ben Torres)
We first learn about God and His love through our family, which is why St. Paul VI stated in Lumen Gentium, "The family, is so to speak, the domestic Church."
In each print issue, the North Texas Catholic features a local family on its page, "The Domestic Church." Recently, Andy and Susie Bezner of St. Peter Parish in Lindsay answered a few questions about their family and their faith.
Question: What are some little things that spouses can do for each other that help strengthen their marriage and love?
Andy: First and foremost, attend Holy Mass together. We attend the weekend Mass together, and regularly attend Wednesday evening Novena and Mass and Saturday morning Mass at St. Peter. This is such a wonderful way to build the marriage relationship, praying together and attending Mass. Dad used to always tell us, "the family that prays together, stays together!"
Couples must give without counting the cost or keeping score. Duties with the children must be shared. For example, as a husband, don't expect the wife to do all the cooking, cleaning, and getting the children ready for bed.
Reading bedtime stories to our children, and now grandchildren, is something I truly have loved and look forward to. Taking care of the children when you get home from work is good parenting. It's not a "chore;" it's an act of love that the children will witness. We also had a general rule of "I cooked — you clean," meaning whichever of us cooked the meal, the other person did the cleanup.
One other little thing we do is celebrate our "monthaversary," We were married on the 29th so every month on the 29th we celebrate our anniversary. We don't always do anything special, but we say it. We've been married 414 months!
There will be disagreements and difficulties, especially in the first years as you figure each other out. However, always remember to say "I'm sorry, please forgive me." Working together and building your relationship with Christ at the center, will lead to a happy and blessed life. God, family, work has been a guiding framework for our marriage.
Question: How do you balance your responsibilities and interests within the context of the family?
Andy: Balancing work, serving the Church through ministry, taking care of the children, and making time for each other is challenging, but when you prioritize life in a manner that Christ would approve of, it's not that hard. Serving Christ through ministry is very rewarding. Our children learn by watching our examples. Being involved as a Sacristan, Extraordinary Minister, or Lector I could serve on the altar at the same time my daughter or son were altar servers. I was able to train them how to serve properly, to know what to do, and when. This was very rewarding for me as a dad, and for them as a child, to learn to serve Christ.
Children want our time and attention. As parents, the greatest love you can give a child is your time. The more time you give your child when they are little is repaid with less time that you will have to spend getting them out of trouble as teenagers. Communication is the key; listening to their needs and concerns will go a long way to building a loving relationship.
Parents need a date night to have time for each other, to talk about their life, their children, goals, and challenges of life in the home. When we're together we can share our burdens as Psalm 68:19 states: "Blessed day by day be the Lord, who bears our burdens." Communicating with your spouse and discussing ways to be a good Catholic family, goes a long way to keeping the marriage blessed and joyful. Planning together and keeping a disciplined schedule helps to maintain a happy and peaceful home.
Children crave discipline, they may push the boundaries, but deep down they want to do and know what's right, and that means saying "no" to some of the activities they want to do. Parents are central to their children's lives and activities. We have choices every day, needs vs. wants, and our children learn how to handle them based on what the parents teach them. One trend we see is parents allowing their children to join many activities. While some are important and fun to do, they can add a lot of unnecessary stress and expense. Often, these activities become priority over any Sunday obligation. We will reap what we sow — we must try to teach our children to sow fruit that will last.
2 Timothy 1:8 says "Bear your share of hardships for the Gospel with the strength that comes from God." Life is difficult, challenging, sometimes it seems overwhelming, but take one thing at a time, don't do too many activities, and place your trust in God to strengthen you and your family.
Question: How do you pass on the faith to your children?
Andy and Susie: Christ showed us the way by His example and we, as parents, lay the foundation for our children by doing the same. Taking them to Mass as toddlers through adulthood and being involved in church ministries, as I've stated earlier, is the key. We'd always say the Rosary on road trips to the grandparents' home, and have the children say which mystery was next. The joy on their faces when they knew the next mystery was priceless! On the way to school, Susie would have them recite the morning offering and teach them ways to be kind and loving towards their classmates. These are a few ways we would pray with the children outside the home, to create more time inside the home as we balanced our busy schedules.
We always did meal prayers together to teach them the Hail Mary, and the Our Father, and night prayers were always special times to talk about what's going on in their lives, and why, or who to pray for in a special way. We'd let the kids pick someone or something to pray for besides the "normal" mom, dad, grandpa, grandma, etc; this way they felt like their prayer was special and pleasing to God, because it came from them.
As a parent, one of the things I loved was giving them a nightly blessing with holy water and letting them know how much God loves them and to be thankful for all He did for them this day. Our children watching us pray and learning how to pray from us is good, but letting them say the words of prayers, no matter how slow or long it takes, is something they will remember for a lifetime. The fruit for us as parents was seeing them become involved in Vacation Bible School, youth ministry, Camp Fort Worth, and other church activities along with going off to college and becoming involved with the Catholic Church as a college student and staying active in the faith. This is both rewarding and exciting knowing they are starting out on the right path of serving our Lord thru service to others.
Question: How has marriage helped your faith life? And how has your faith life helped your marriage?
Susie: Marriage has helped our faith by helping us to realize that children are a gift from God and we don't have to raise them alone. God, through our marriage, is there to help us. Faith helps us realize how important it is to rely on His love to guide and bless us as parents, to do what is right and pleasing to Him, in raising our children in a Catholic home.
Our faith has helped our marriage in trusting in God's love for us as a family. Trusting in God to guide us in this process takes a faith-filled home. We are blessed with two children. It's our responsibility first and foremost, to do all that is necessary to get our soul to heaven, then our spouse's soul, and then our children's souls. Everything we do should lead us towards this realization, heaven is our true home.
God gave us the sacraments to help guide us along the way to Eternity with Him in heaven. It's our responsibility as parents to trust and believe in Him. Matthew 28: 20 says "I am with you always; yes, to the end of time." Knowing that God didn't create us to abandon us; He wants to be with us, but we have to respond to Him too.
Faith in our marriage allows us as parents to offer our sufferings, our crosses, together as a couple, in unity with Christ. Mary suffered with Christ on many occasions. When our children are hurt or suffer, we too suffer, but the suffering can be used for good, just as it did for Mary. The goal is to accept and join these sufferings to Christs' passion on the Cross for the salvation of sinners.
Question: How has marriage shown you that God isn't finished with you yet and is still calling you to more?
Susie: In the beginning of married life, we shared different prayers that we've had as individuals. As the years passed, we grew in our faith and our marriage became stronger. We also recognized marriage as the true sacrament that it is and use it to help each other in trying to get to heaven.
In life and in marriage, you have to deny yourself certain things for the benefit of others. Who hasn't given up that shopping trip, or golf outing, to do something with their spouse? We are always called to do the will of God, it doesn't end when the children move away from home or when we retire. He still calls us to be disciples as a married couple — the role as husband and wife may change, but we still listen and seek God's will as a married couple, as He calls us to do more.
I work as a nurse practitioner, and for several years I have given an abstinence presentation to the high school girls, and the senior religion classes, and have been asked recently to join the RCIA program. Andy recently became an installed Acolyte and serves at Mass. Our Catholic faith is an occupation for a lifetime, and we try to listen to God's call for us as ministers in whatever capacity is needed. Now as grandparents, we see our role as helping to pass our Catholic faith onto them. Recently during nighttime prayers, our two-and-a half year old grandson blessed us with holy water on our foreheads, like we did for our daughter, his mother. It's wonderful to think about ways to share our faith and traditions with the next generation. Doing God's work as St. Therese showed by her example can be done by doing the little things with great love. We are always striving to bring others to Christ and have been doing this our entire lives knowing that God isn't finished using us to bring others to Him.
Question: What are some things you do as a family to continue growing in faith?
Susie: Spending time with our children. Our daughter has 2 small children so our role as grandparents has begun, and our son recently married. We take any opportunity to share things through our family group text messages. We stay as close as possible, with many miles of separation (they live in Lubbock and Dallas), which is much easier with the technology of today. We share prayer devotions, Holy Spirit moments, and prayer requests. We use the seasons of Advent and Lent for spiritual growth along with feast days or saints' days to share our faith.
The holiday seasons always provide an opportunity to spend time with family. Our gatherings always include attending Holy Mass together and visiting extended families. My mom is 87, with almost 90 members when we are all gathered. Andy's dad is almost 90 with over 30 extended family members. What wonderful wisdom to share and be gained from one another. We gather with our siblings and families to share stories about faith, family, and relationships that will foster the growth in our faith. We count on each other for support spiritually and for guidance to help with all the trials and crosses that we may encounter. God is the potter and we are the clay. We strive to listen to His call to grow in our faith and become what He wants us to be; a family growing in our faith in the Domestic Church.
- - -
Andy and Susie Bezner attend St. Peter Parish in Lindsay, where they serve as RCIA instructors and Eucharistic Ministers. Andy is also an installed Acolyte, Sacristan, Lector, and Knight of Columbus member.
Married 34 years, they have two grown children and two young grandchildren.
We first learn about God and His love through our family, which is why St. Paul VI stated in Lumen Gentium, "The family, is so to speak, the domestic Church."


text:
Ideal for smoothing sauces as well as whipping cream, egg whites and vinaigrettes, this all purpose magic whisk features silicone wires and a stainless steel handle to ensure you always have a secure grip. The whisk is heat resistant to 260°C/500°F, not that you would want to be whisking at such heat! Coated with the highest quality European grade food safe silicone (LFGB).
Available in the key Colourworks colours, the whisk can be co-ordinated with a range of other items in the Colourworks range, allowing you to mix, match and co-ordinate your kitchen in a striking array of colours.


text:
New images have arrived from the new James Bond film Skyfall and Paul W.S. Anderson's Resident Evil: Retribution. I'm still impressed by the latest Skyfall trailers, and I'm hoping that the face-off between Bond (Daniel Craig) and Javier Bardem's villain will be one of the franchise's best duels. As for Resident Evil: Retribution, it's Milla Jovovich wearing skintight leather and wielding two guns, which seems to be more than enough for the franchise's fans.
Hit the jump to check out the images. Skyfall opens November 9th, and also stars Bérénice Marlohe, Judi Dench, Naomie Harris, Ben Whishaw, Helen McCroy, Albert Finney, and Ralph Fiennes. Resident Evil: Retribution opens September 14th, and also stars Sienna Guillory, Oded Fehr, Boris Kodjoe, Johann Urb, Kevin Durand, Bingbing Li, and Michelle Rodriguez.
Image via HeyUGuys.
Here's the official synopsis for Skyfall:
Daniel Craig is back as James Bond 007 in Skyfall, the 23rd adventure in the longest-running film franchise of all time. In Skyfall, Bond's loyalty to M (Judi Dench) is tested as her past comes back to haunt her. As MI6 comes under attack, 007 must track down and destroy the threat, no matter how personal the cost.
Image via Bloody-Disgusting.
Here's the official synopsis for Resident Evil: Retribution:
The Umbrella Corporation's deadly T-virus continues to ravage the Earth, transforming the global population into legions of the flesh eating Undead. The human race's last and only hope, Alice (Milla Jovovich), awakens in the heart of Umbrella's most clandestine operations facility and unveils more of her mysterious past as she delves further into the complex. Without a safe haven, Alice continues to hunt those responsible for the outbreak; a chase that takes her from Tokyo to New York, Washington, D.C. and Moscow, culminating in a mind-blowing revelation that will force her to rethink everything that she once thought to be true. Aided by newfound allies and familiar friends, Alice must fight to survive long enough to escape a hostile world on the brink of oblivion. The countdown has begun.


text:
ALBANY — New York's ethics board declined Tuesday to shield the financial reports of four advocacy groups that say public disclosure of their financial backers is likely to result in threats or even harm.
The Joint Commission on Public Ethics rejected the requests of Family Planning Advocates and New York Women's Equality Coalition, which back abortion rights. The panel also rejected requests from New Yorkers for Constitutional Freedoms, which opposes abortion and gay marriage, and the New York Civil Liberties Union, which advocates for free speech and other individual rights.
"I think the overriding view is more transparency," Commissioner George Weissman said. "We've said this in many different ways."
The commission requires reports from state lobbyists, though it can withhold records of contributors to lobbying groups that show their donors would likely face danger, threats and harassment if disclosed.
Separately, the commission scaled back the disclosure exemption granted last June to NARAL Pro-Choice NY, another abortion rights advocate. That's now scheduled to expire July 15 or almost 18 months earlier than previously approved.
Commission Chairman Daniel Horwitz said that was done after the commission revised its regulations to increase disclosure and raise the threshold for exemptions.
Three board members favored shielding financial reports from the NYCLU, Family Planning Advocates and New York Women's Equality Coalition. When the exemption for New Yorkers for Constitutional Freedoms was considered, nobody on the 14-seat board proposed approving it.
"I think this is a pretty compelling case that they made," Commissioner Paul Casteleiro said of the NYCLU. He cited threats to staff at the American Civil Liberties Union throughout the country over a period of time.
The commission is scheduled to consider formal rejection notices that will be sent to the groups when it meets again next month. After they receive the notices, they can appeal the decision.
The NYCLU said it will fight it and consider every option, including going to court.
"The Supreme Court has long recognized that donors who support organizations that engage in advocacy on controversial issues may become targets of harassment, and worse, and therefore the court has held that the government may not compel the publication of personal information regarding those individuals," NYCLU Executive Director Donna Lieberman said. She added that the commission itself meets in private, is "selectively secret" and has unclear and constantly changing standards.
The Rev. Jason McGuire, executive director of New Yorkers for Constitutional Freedoms, said the commission decision on its application was unfair and disappointing but not unexpected. The group plans to take "all available steps" to reverse the result, which he said is almost certain to have a chilling effect on donors to many advocacy-oriented nonprofits.
"After our application was submitted, JCOPE decided to change its regulations and its application process," McGuire said. "However, one organization — NARAL Pro-Choice New York — had already been granted a donor disclosure exemption under JCOPE's initial regulations. It is simply wrong to use one set of rules for one applicant and a different set of rules for all others."
NY ethics board declines to shield reports
ALBANY — New York's ethics board declined Tuesday to shield the financial reports of four advocacy groups that say public disclosure of their financial backers is likely to result in threats or even harm.